Reunion
by TheHFness
Summary: AU taking place after the Fifth Stage. Claire and Gretchen go to the Carnival for the night. When Claire runs into the 'Dead' Elle Bishop. How will it change her? And her relationship with Gretchen.


_**Hello Everyone. This is my week of Eclaire fics. I will have one for everyday of this week. I hope you all enjoy. Anything Special you would like to see. Just leave a review. And I'll see what I can do.**_

_**Disclaimer:I do not own Heroes.**_

Claire sighed to herself as she watched all of the Carnival lights shine brightly. She look down at the popcorn she had taken from Samuel, it was half way empty. She promised they would stick around until she at least finished her popcorn.

She couldn't really complain. It was amazing seeing people like her, in their element, using their powers. With everyone around, whom she assumed were all clueless except for the tall brunette walking beside her.

The Cheerleader had counted her blessings since the day she decided to explain her ability to Gretchen. She really had been a good friend to her. Keeping her secret, being there for her through everything with her Dad, and coming all the way in to the middle of nowhere just so Claire could find herself.

Gretchen gently put her hand on Claire's shoulder. "Are you alright? We can always jet."

Claire grabbed her hand gently looking up to the tall brunette with a small smile on her face. "I'm good. It's just so strange seeing all these people...People like me so out in open. Just makes me wonder what it would be like to stay here."

"It really is a small world. Out of the billions of people in the world. There like maybe one hundred here and you know one them. Even more amazing the someone with an ability. I never really thought what it must have been like for you, you know, having to deal with it alone."

"I had my Dad. Even though he doesn't have a power, he always understood me. He really did everything he did to protect me. Even if the things seemed pretty shifty." Claire smiled gently.

"HEY. POWERS GOING OUT ON THE FERRIS WHEEL. GET BLUE OVER HERE." An older man yelled over the noise of the Tilt-a-whirl beside him.

Claire looked up the large mechanical wheel was starting to slow with the lights on the side starting to flicker. Claire saw a flash of blonde disappear from a tent on the other side of the Ferris Wheel platform to underneath.

Claire saw a softly blue light coming from underneath the black tarp surrounding the base of the platform. Her heart jumped into her chest.

It was impossible. There was no way it was her. Sylar had said he killed her. Her father said she was reported dead in the company reports.

The nagging voice in the back of the indestructible blonde's head got the better of her. She dropped her popcorn and took off in a mad dash through the crowd that had started to from around the games.

Gretchen looked at her confused. The tall brunette followed as close as she could. Claire may have been vertically challenged but she was fast. It was probably all the years as a cheerleader.

Claire stopped dead in her tracks as she heard a soft familiar giggle.

"It wasn't anything really. Just needed a little jump start. The wiring down there is going to have to get fixed soon. I can jump it. But I can't really do anything about that." The electric blonde smiled softly to the Ferris Wheel operator.

"Thanks Blue. I don't know what we would do with out you around. Those shortages are no problem for you though." The older gentlemen smiled.

Claire tried to find her voice, but her words just seemed to elude her. "Elle..." She spoke softly. She wasn't even sure if she had spoken. The words were deaf to her ears.

The blood had rushed her head. Her heart was in her throat,her ears were pounding, and her stomach was flopping up and down.

The Electric Blonde whipped around. She hadn't been called by her real name in a very long time. Not since, Samuel and his healer and found her on the beach. Claire stood no more then fifty feet away from her.

"Hey Cheerleader..." Was all that the electric blonde could muster. She hadn't expected to ever see Claire again. At least, not until it was on her terms.

Elle wasn't just with Samuel because she had no where to go. She wanted to do something good. She was given a second chance. She didn't want to mess it up.

She was taken even more by surprise when Claire openly rushed her. Elle put her hands up in a defensive position. She didn't summon her powers. She knew whatever the cheerleader was going to do she totally deserved.

Claire wrapped her arms tightly around her neck and held into her tight. The Electric Blonde was more then slightly confused. She could feel Claire's heart pounding against her chest. She never thought, she could loose herself so quickly.

She dropped her arms to rest them around the Cheerleader's waist. She pulled smaller blonde close, nuzzling her face into neck of the cheerleader.

"I thought I lost you..."Claire mumbled quietly.

Elle didn't know what to say. She was confused. Whenever it had come to Claire, her emotions were always something hard for her to understand. They had kissed in the plane bathroom,stayed together the night in the hotel before they went to Pineherst. Then after that everything had fallen apart.

"I'm so sorry Claire. None of that was suppose to happen. I was suppose to bring you in so I could keep you safe. That's all I wanted." Elle grabbed her lightly by the hips and pushed the cheerleader away gently. "I never meant for you to get hurt."

"A part of me died the day Sylar told me he killed you." Claire put her hand on the side of the Electric Blonde's face.

Elle leaned into her touch. "Claire. I was so stupid. I was scared and I panicked. I thought if they could take my power away, we could be together. I mean for real."

Elle looked cautiously over Claire's shoulder. "Did you come here with someone?"

"Yeah. Why?" The Former Cheerleader asked confused.

Elle just tilted her head suggestively for the indestructible blonde to turn around.

Claire's eyes followed Elle. Claire turned around to see Gretchen standing not to far from them. The pain expression on the girl's face made Claire's heart break slightly. "Fuck."

Elle watched the Claire's expression change from one extreme to another. She was obviously torn about what to do. "Why don't you go with her for now? I'll still be here when everything shuts down. I'm sure if your here, in the middle of no where, it was Samuel's doing. He probably will invite you to look around after the night is done. Even your friend over there."

Claire just nodded. She grabbed Elle's hand and played with her fingers slightly. "You promise you will be around right?"

"Of course. I wouldn't take off on you...At least not again."

Elle let a small spark jump between her hand and Claire's. Earning her a small smile, Elle watched as Claire walked away toward Gretchen.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to take off on you like that." Claire looked up to the tall brunette.

Gretchen just shook her hands in front of her. "No need to explain Claire. I totally get it. You ran into someone else you knew. It's just a little crazy to me you know a few people here."

"It's not a small world. It's a connected world. I was told that once." Claire said softly.

Gretchen looked over to where the other blonde girl had stood just a few seconds ago. She knew she didn't really have the right to ask, but Claire had been pretty honest with her. If Claire didn't want her to know, she just wouldn't tell her.

"So who was she?"

Claire sighed looking down at her hands. "That's where it gets complicated."

Gretchen shrugged. "I have a whole thing of popcorn left. I'm sure I can make it last through the story. That is if you are willing to tell it."

"Yeah. Sure." Claire said quietly. Making their way to the far side of the Carnival, Claire found a bench for them to sit down on.

She tilted her head signaling for the brunette to take a seat beside her. "It's weird, complicated, and pretty unbelievable."

"Well. I like weird. We're...complicated. Sine I have known you I have seen some pretty unbelievable things. So I am all for the it."

Claire was thinking about where she should start. Start with Pineherst,Sylar's attack, the odd team up of Elle and Sylar.

"Alright. Elle used to work with my Dad. They did what they call 'Bagging and Tagging..." Claire said lightly.

The conversation lasted almost an hour. Gretchen had listened to everything she had to say. Claire left out some of the details about her intimacy with the electric blonde.

"So the Japanese dude saved you and you hadn't seen Elle since?" Gretchen asked confused. Trying to take it all in was a little confusing.

"Yeah. But after that Sylar, killed her. Or at least we thought he had." Claire said with slight pain in her voice.

"Even after everything that happened, you still want to be her friend?" Gretchen asked sharply. She had become very protective of Claire in the few short months they had known each other. Not that she needed protecting.

"Elle and my relationship has always been weird. When she died, I lost myself for a long time. She was really the only girl who I had ever met that had powers. I mean spent time with. She was just scared. She has always been a scared little girl who hid behind her ability. I thought maybe just maybe I had gotten through to her. Even after everything that had happened between us, we were so similar. If I had been taken from my Dad, I would have turned into her. A ruthless killer. Her Dad experiment on her since she was six years old. Most of us have our powers develop later in life. She has had her powers since she was four years old. Mine didn't show up until I was almost 16. The short time I spent with her, the more I realized we were a like. Before I knew it, I had fallen in love with her..." Claire said the last sentence very softly.

"You still love her don't you?" Gretchen asked with her voice shaking slightly.

"I don't know. I shouldn't. I thought I had gotten pasted it. I had let her go. I was ready to move on. Then she came back, she was right in front of me. As soon as I heard her voice, everything that had happened, just melted away. It didn't matter." Claire sighed slightly.

"Why didn't you tell me about her? Like whenever we talked about past relationships and stuff?" Gretchen was slightly confused. Claire obviously wasn't ashamed of how she felt about the blonde girl.

"It hurt too much to talk about it. We really didn't have a relationship. At least not anything defined. I know we both knew how we felt about the other. But, she was never good with her feelings."

Samuel came quietly behind the girls. "Well ladies, what do you think of my home?"

Claire smiled softly. "It's incredible to meet so many people like me, that are just out on the open. I know it's not complete freedom, but it's more then what I could have asked for."

"I'm glad you like it here Claire. You are more then welcome to come and join our special family."

Gretchen looked to the older man standing in front of them. "We have to go back to school Monday."

Samuel nodded. "I understand. How about you stay just a little longer? We are all cleaned up. Now you can meet everyone else. How about that? Just for a little while."

Claire looked over to the tall brunette standing beside her. Gretchen just shrugged. "I guess it wouldn't hurt for now."

Samuel took his time introducing Claire to the family. He even had convinced her to tell a story to all of the children. It was a nightly tradition. A new story was very welcomed be the smallest members of the traveling clan.

Gretchen took a seat not to far from the inner circle. She was close enough to hear Claire. But far enough away to give the girl some space. She sat looking up at the sky. It was so peaceful out here. No wonder all of these people gathered together.

"You will never understand what it's like to be her. To be special like us." Elle said quietly.

Gretchen felt her body tense up. She hadn't even heard the older blonde girl come up beside her. "I never claimed I could."

"She really doesn't want to hurt you, you know." Elle crossed her arms looking up at the stars.

"I understand that. I just wish she would have told me." Gretchen said calmly. "

"Would you want to talk about losing the one person who could quite literally have been made for you?" Elle said boldly.

Gretchen stood up, turning around quickly she looked down at the electric blonde. "What makes you think you have that right to make that claim. After everything you have done to her. You shot her for Christ's Sake."

Leaving the circle to find Gretchen, Claire found herself nervous as she found the two objects of her affection standing together, talking very intensely.

"Because I love her. I love her more then anything. You haven't even touched the tip of the iceberg of Claire's feelings." Elle said sternly. "My power has killed almost anyone it has touched. It has even almost killed me. Claire is the only one who has even been able to stand beside me. The only person who understands what it's like to be me. The only person who has ever made me so fucking confused, I lost all the self confidence I have ever had. I am a pretty cocky fucker too. I crumble when she and I are together."

Claire stood a few feet away with her mouth open widely. She never expected such an honest reply from the electric blonde. Especially one explaining her feelings so openly. It was obvious neither girl noticed her standing so close to them. Claire could feel her heart tearing, twisting, and turning.

"What you just assume it's just some silly crush I have on her? You don't know what she and I have been through together." Gretchen glared down at Elle. She knew the capability of the electric blonde. But she was going to stand her ground to matter what the cost.

"I'm not saying you don't care for her. It's very clear you do. I can tell she cares about you too. She is very confused." Elle looked her straight in the eyes. "Just know that this isn't a game."

"I never said it was." Gretchen did back down. Nor did the electric blonde expect her too. Usually the company Claire kept had a stubborn unwavering will just as the cheerleader herself did.

Claire couldn't stand the bickering anymore. She made her way between them. She looked toward both of them and shook her head. "Will you two stop?"

"Claire-bear..." Was the only thing to escape the electric blonde's mouth.

"I'm sorry Claire." Gretchen said softly as she looked down at the shorter girl.

Claire's face softened slightly when she looked over to the taller girl. "Can we talk?"

"Yeah." The brunette said softly as she started to make her way towards the front entrance. Claire followed her closely.

Elle saw the sadness in Claire's eyes as she looked back towards her. Feeling a slight wave of jealously come over her, Elle tried to calm the voltage that started to dance around her.

Coming behind Elle, Samuel put his hand on her shoulder. "I am sorry Dear. I thought she would have come alone. I didn't even know about that girl."

"It's whatever. Claire you do what she wants. If she comes back, I'll be in the field. Tell her to listen for the sound some someone's soul dying." Elle turned away from Samuel making her way towards the outskirts of the Carnival ground.

"Your going to stay aren't you?" Gretchen asked softly. Trying to hold back her tears and slight rage.

"Just for a couple of days. I'll be back at school Monday. I just need to figure some things out." Claire said softly. Closing the small space between her and the Brunette, she hugged her tightly. "Thanks for being so good to me."

Taking in a deep breath, Gretchen hugged her back tightly. "I wouldn't have done anything different."

Elle stood in the middle of the field, staring hopelessly at the stars. She had never felt so lost. What would she do without Claire? Especially now that she had seen her. She would have been fine, but with her coming to carnival, all the feelings Elle thought she had buried just came back with a vengeance.

She fell to the ground softly. Sitting on her knees with her palms to the ground. She could feel the electricity building up in her body. She slammed her fist into the ground, as she started to cry.

She could feel herself starting to loose control. The sparks started to dance off her wildly, in every direction. The sky started to haze over. Lighting up with a soft blue light.

A loud booming sound feel into Claire's ears, she looked over to see a large blue light fading then glowing brighter. She could faintly make you the sound of Elle's soft cry's.

"I have to go. She needs me." With that Claire took off as fast as her body would allow her to go.

Gretchen watched her disappear into the dark field. "What about when I need you?"

Claire stopped a few feet away from the electric blonde. She had never seen had so broken. Not even the last time she had lost control of her powers. It broke Claire's heart to hear her sobbing.

"Elle." Claire spoke softly as she made her way over to the older girl.

"Did you come to say good-bye?" Elle asked with her voice shaking quietly.

Claire just knelt down behind her, she wrapped her arms around Elle shoulders from behind holding onto her tightly. "No. I came to tell you how much I need you."

Elle felt herself start to break. Turning around she threw her arms around the cheerleader's waist. Letting her forehead rest against Claire's. "I missed you."

Claire smiled lightly as she pulled Elle closer. "I missed you too. I felt like part of me died the day you did. I know it sounds crazy after the way everything ended. But this connection between us. I don't know how to explain it."

Elle just smiled. "Claire we are bound together by fate. That's all there is to it. We were made for each other."

Claire nodded. "I love you." She spoke softly.

Elle leaned forward and kissed Claire gently on the lips. Elle leaned in and wrapped her arms tighter around Claire's waist. The electric rubbed the small of her lover's back gently, slowly parting her lips and slide her tongue out. She ran her tongue gently against Claire's bottom lip. The smaller blonde parted her lips and allowed the foreign body to enter her mouth. Pulling away Elle leaned her forehead against the cheerleaders.

"I love you too, Claire-bear."


End file.
